One morning, my wife asked if I would like to attend a chocolate tasting. Well, being a sweets addict and chocolate lover, there was no way i was passing up the opportunity to satisfy my addiction. We arrived at the Blue Rose Inn on Washington Street and, to my surprise, it was a full house. I was happy to see a local business doing so well on a December day.
After we were seated, a look at the menu told me this wasn’t going to be your typical Whitman’s Sampler chocolate tasting. The menu offered seven courses of delicious hand-crafted desserts. The General Manager, Justin, came into our dining room and explained the menu in detail. Everything is crafted in house. The Blue Rose insists on using all local resources and businesses to create their dishes; they even have their own herb garden on site where they grow spices. The chocolate they use is imported directly from France. Justin explained how the percentages of chocolate determine how light or dark it is, and how chocolates from different regions of the world have significantly different tastes.
Being a picky eater, I wasn’t sure I would like all of the courses, but I was optimistic and ready to try everything. After the first few courses, I was in heaven. The combination of chocolates and other ingredients the chefs combined were fantastic. I can’t say I didn’t like any of them, and my plate was wiped clean at the end of each course. We finished with probably the best hot chocolate and ginger snap I’ve ever had. All in all, the entire experience was great and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves chocolate—or just wants to try something different!
The Blue Rose offers a full wine list from local Hawk Haven Winery, and coffees, cappuccino, espresso, iced tea and sodas. Beverages and gratuity are not included with the $40 ticket price, so be sure to have some extra cash on hand.
The Chocolate Lovers Feast will resume on February 17 for Valentine’s weekend and the event will continue monthly throughout the year. For more information, visit capemaymac.org. And to see more Cape May events taking place over the Valentine’s Day/Presidents’ Day weekend, please visit CapeMay.com’s event calendar
Photographs by Michelle Giorla
